Today I am attempting to attend three sporting events at three different stadiums – Northwestern Football kicks off at 11 am, the Chicago Cubs first pitch is at 3 pm and the US Women’s National Soccer team hosts Ireland at 7 pm. I have only attended three sporting events at three different venues once before – June 5, 2004. That day I attended the Chicago Cubs game at noon, the Chicago Fire game at 3 pm (good thing the Cubs game only lasted 2.5 hours) and the Milwaukee …

Last Sunday night I was in Central Florida. If I had been in Chicago, I probably would have driven to Milwaukee for the Houston Astros neutral site game versus the Chicago Cubs. Not only did I miss the neutral site game, but I also missed Carlos Zambrano’s no-hitter (I have never witnessed a no-hitter in the 780 regular season games I have attended).
Today I attended the Cubs game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Zambrano was pitching. I do not believe I have ever seen a pitcher …

The Brewers beat the Cubs last night 6-2 in my 52nd Cubs home game of the year. The most Cubs games I have attended during the regular season were 53 in 2004. Ben Sheets left the game in the top of the third inning with tightness in his right forearm and the Brewers used seven pitchers in relief.
Pre Game DiningBefore the game we met some friends for dinner at Pizza Rustica which is 2.5 blocks north of Wrigley Field. If you are looking for non-Chicago style pizza …

For the second time in as many nights, I attended a MLB game between a division’s 1st and 2nd place teams. Monday night was the AL East in St. Petersburg. Tuesday night was the NL Central in Chicago.
The Chicago Cubs defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4 in C.C. Sabathia’s first National League loss. The game marked Dale Sveum’s managerial debut for the Brewers after Ned Yost was fired Monday.
Pre Game DiningOnce again we headed to the Full Schilling for pre game drinks which include a hot dog with …

This past weekend, Nicole and I traveled to Florida to visit her family. Both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were home while we were there. With Tampa about a 90 minute drive from her family’s home, I chose to attend only one game rather than drive down to Tampa twice. Thus, I had a decision to make. Under my guidelines of prioritizing which game to attend, I would normally choose to attend a NFL game over a MLB game – the main reason being that there …

With the weather forecast showing rain in Chicago all day, the only sporting event option was to attend the Northwestern football game. Although the White Sox were scheduled to play a double header (after their Friday night game was postponed because of rain), it was pretty clear both White Sox games would be rained out.
Today I drove up to Evanston to watch Northwestern host Southern Illinois. It was the first game I have attended where one of the teams was from Division I-AA (or the Football Championship Subdivision). Two weeks …

The NFL season is a week underway. For the second year in a row, I made it to opening day in true form. Last year, I was in San Diego to see my Bears, unfortunately, lose against the Chargers. This year, I was supporting my in-law’s favorite team, the Niners, against the Cardinals. Unfortunately, the highlight of both of these years was the tailgate before the games.
Of course, the loss is always a downer but more recently, NFL hooligans are also a pretty big …

If you are looking for an international soccer match where the tickets are available and affordable, you do not have to travel far and the match has meaning, then check out the World Cup qualifying schedules. World Cup qualifying begins about two years before the next World Cup – meaning most countries are already participating in qualifying matches for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Last night, in the first World Cup qualifier I have attended, the US Men’s National Team defeated the national team of Trinidad & Tobago 3-0. …

For the fifth time, I attended an NFL game on a Sunday afternoon and then followed that up by attending Monday Night Football. Last night the Denver Broncos beat the Oakland Raiders 41-14 in the most lopsided NFL game I have witnessed since October 29, 2006.
ParkingWe arrived at McAfee Coliseum about an hour before game time. The stadium lots were already full so we had to park in the overflow lots on the other side of I-880. Parking Tip: Do not exit at Hegenberger Ave. if you know the stadium …

For the first time since 1999, I attended an NFL game on the regular season’s opening Sunday. We arrived at Candlestick Park early in order to tailgate. Parking cost $25, which seemed low for an NFL game.
Tailgating Tip at Candlestick Park: Try to arrive at Candlestick Park before 10 am if you are planning to tailgate. We arrived at 9:45 am and were able to park close to the stadium while ample parking was available. However, within an hour the lot was filling up and people had to “squeeze” into …